Digital Commons Network^™

Aging In Eastham: A Community Needs Assessment, Caitlin Coyle, Beth Rouleau

Center for Social and Demographic Research on Aging Publications

This report describes research undertaken by the Center for Social & Demographic Research on Aging within the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts Boston, on behalf of the Eastham Council on Aging. The goals of this project were to investigate the needs, interests, preferences, and opinions of Eastham’s residents age 50 or older. The contents of this report are meant to inform the Town of Eastham, the Eastham Council on Aging and Senior Center, and organizations that work with and on behalf of older residents of Eastham for the purposes of planning and coordination of services. The report will …

ความรับผิดรับชอบและการให้ความช่วยเหลือทางเศรษฐกิจในช่วงโควิด-19 ของรัฐบาลในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้, สุรัชนี ศรีใย

Journal of Social Sciences

บทความวิจัยนี้ศึกษาถึงความเชื่อมโยงระหว่างความรับผิดรับชอบของรัฐบาลและปฏิกิริยาต่อวิกฤตการณ์เศรษฐกิจที่เป็นผลมาจากการระบาดของโรคโควิด-19 โดยผ่านกรอบคิดเรื่อง competing principals ที่ชี้ให้เห็นว่าความรู้สึกรับผิดรับชอบของรัฐบาลต่อผู้มีส่วนได้ส่วนเสียต่าง ๆ นั้นอาจไม่เท่ากัน และอาจส่งผลต่อผลิตผลเชิงนโยบายด้วยเช่นกัน ในกรณีของการระบาดของโรคโควิด-19นั้น ผลเชิงนโยบายนั้นแสดงออกมาในรูปแบบที่รัฐต้องตัดสินใจว่าจะทุ่มเททรัพยากรเพื่อให้การช่วยเหลือทางเศรษฐกิจแก่ประชาชนกลุ่มไหน มากน้อยเพียงใด โดยอาศัยข้อมูลเชิงปริมาณและการเก็บสถิติเรื่องการให้การช่วยเหลือทางเศรษฐกิจของแต่ละประเทศจาก The Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT) และตัวชี้วัดแบบมหภาคอื่นๆ งานศึกษาชิ้นนี้พบว่าภูมิภาคเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้นั้นมีความแตกต่างจากที่อื่น ๆ ในโลก กล่าวคือ ความรู้สึกรับผิดรับชอบของรัฐบาลต่อผู้มีส่วนได้ส่วนเสียต่าง ๆ แบบเดียวที่มีผลต่อระดับการให้การช่วยเหลือทางเศรษฐกิจต่อประชาชนของรัฐบาลในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ คือ แบบแนวทแยง (diagonal accountability) ซึ่งเกิดจากการที่สื่อมวลชนและภาคประชาสังคมเปิดเผยและให้ข้อมูลต่อสาธารณชนเพื่อสร้างแรงกดดันต่อรัฐอีกทางหนึ่ง ข้อค้นพบนี้ไม่เพียงแสดงให้เห็นถึงสภาวะกลืนไม่เข้าคายไม่ออกที่รัฐต้องเผชิญเมื่อมีผู้มีส่วนได้ส่วนเสียจำนวนมากในกระบวนการกำหนดนโยบายแต่ยังสะท้อนอีกด้วยว่า 1) รัฐบาลในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้อาจไม่ได้รู้สึกถึงความรับผิดรับชอบต่อประชาชนโดยตรงมากนัก 2) รัฐบาลในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้อาจไม่ได้รู้สึกถึงความรับผิดรับชอบต่อกลไกเชิงบริหาร เช่น การตรวจสอบและคานอำนาจเช่นเดียวกัน และ 3) รัฐบาลในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้จะรู้สึกว่าต้องทำอะไรบางอย่างเพื่อตอบสนองหรือให้การช่วยเหลือประชาชนก็ต่อเมื่อสื่อและภาคประชาสังคมเริ่มตีแผ่ปัญหาและให้ข้อมูลแก่สาธารณชน

Integration Of Public Policy Into Civil Engineering Undergraduate Curricula: Review Of Civil Engineering Body Of Knowledge And Course Application, Michelle R. Oswald Beiler

Faculty Conference Papers and Presentations

The field of civil and environmental engineering directly ties with serving the needs of the public through infrastructure development and improvements in sustainable environments. Integrating this reciprocal connection between public policy and civil engineering into undergraduate civil engineering education is critical for the preparation of the next generation of engineers. This project, first, reviews the guidance of public policy in civil engineering programs, such as ASCE’s Civil Engineering Body of Knowledge. Then, a pedagogical application is presented that focuses on the integration of public policy concepts, methods, assessment tools and techniques in a required, upper level course in civil and …

Space Debris Mitigation: A Unified Policy Framework, Forrest Randall Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Space debris is a growing problem that impacts the ability to maneuver and conduct space missions, creates hazards for people on Earth, and has the potential for severe environmental damage. Clean-up efforts are not viable in the modern era due to a lack of viable, affordable, and safe technology conducive to such lines of effort. This leaves mitigative and preventative policy measures as the most effective way to proffer a solution to the problem. Public policy has largely failed to address space debris mitigation effectively due to the fragmentation of policies standards and a lack of horizontal integration of policies …

Longitudinal Effects Of Prenatal Teratogen Exposure On Executive Function And Academic Outcomes, Dawn Michele Moore

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The healthy development of executive function in adolescents is essential for controlling attention and behavior, especially as children confront the challenges associated with puberty, social situations, parental pressures, academic pursuits, and the transition to adulthood. For children prenatally exposed to teratogenic substances (i.e., certain prescription medications, maternal infections or conditions, alcohol, tobacco, etc.), higher-order cognitive skills may be compromised, resulting in an increased risk of delayed developmental functioning, deficits in cognitive and executive functioning, and poorer academic outcomes. Research findings suggest that even low-to-moderate levels of alcohol and/or tobacco use during pregnancy are associated with poorer academic performance, lower IQ …

Relationship Between Substance Use, Alcohol, And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms In Law Enforcement, Vanessa Nash

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Law enforcement officers are plagued by a variety of traumatic incidents and organizational stressors. As a result, officers are more likely to use maladaptive coping skills and develop stress-related disorders. The purpose of this study was to identify the predictive relationship between substance use, alcohol use, and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS)/dissociation symptoms in 107 law enforcement officers using the Personal Observation Wellness and Evaluation Report- POWER Portfolio survey through an archival dataset. Lazurus and Folkman’s transactional model of stress and coping was used for the theoretical understanding of the current study. The independent variable for this study was PTSS as …

Understanding The Lack Of Communication Between Communities And Law Enforcement Through A Community Policing Program, Patrick B. Skoczek

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

Inequitable treatment by law enforcement officers has deeply impacted minority communities in the United States. Public incidents of abuse of power, discriminatory treatment, and excessive use of force have received increased attention, creating increased community mistrust of law enforcement officers. To help bridge the gap between communities and law enforcement agencies, this qualitative phenomenological study was conducted to examine the use and impact of the Policing and Public Safety Problem-Solving Programs. Data were collected through interviews with 12 retired police officers and 12 community members. Interview questions were related to participants’ perceptions regarding a breakdown in trust between law …

An Evaluation Of Community-Based Juvenile Firesetting Programs Through The Custodial Lens, Peter William Blaich

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Using general strain theory and social learning theory as the foundation, this generic qualitative study addressed whether interventions and prevention services for juvenile firesetters in the City of Charlotte–Mecklenberg County met needs from the perspectives of critical stakeholders. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 12 parents/guardians of justice-involved adolescent fire offenders. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using a six-step procedure for thematic analysis by Braun and Clarke. The study's results revealed that the current juvenile firesetters intervention and prevention program is perceived as inadequate when applied without input from the adolescent’s parent or guardian. The participants perceived the need …

The Prison Reentry Experience Of Justice-Involved Veterans, Latta Roosevelt Thomas Jr.

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Prison reentry programs attempt to equip justice-involved veterans with life skills necessary for their transition out of prison. This qualitative study addressed the scant understanding of the impact pre-released prison reentry programs have on justice-involved veterans’ transition and reintegration back to the community. The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the perceptions of justice-involved veterans regarding prison reentry programs that have impacted their transition out of prison. The well-being development model and Castro’s military-to-civilian transition model provided the conceptual framework for this qualitative study, using semistructured questions to interview 11 justice-involved veterans regarding their participation in prison reentry …

The Daily Patterns Of Emergency Medical Events, Mary Elizabeth Helander, Margaret K. Formica, Dessa K. Bergen-Cico

Social Science - All Scholarship

This study examines population level daily patterns of time-stamped emergency medical service (EMS) dispatches to establish their situational predictability. Using visualization, sinusoidal regression, and statistical tests to compare empirical cumulative distributions, we analyzed 311,848,450 emergency medical call records from the U.S. National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS) for years 2010 through 2022. The analysis revealed a robust daily pattern in the hourly distribution of distress calls across 33 major categories of medical emergency dispatch types. Sinusoidal regression coefficients for all types were statistically significant, mostly at the p < 0.0001 level. The coefficient of determination ($R^2$) ranged from 0.84 and 0.99 for all models, with most falling in the 0.94 to 0.99 range. The common sinusoidal pattern, peaking in mid-afternoon, demonstrates that all major categories of medical emergency dispatch types appear to be influenced by an underlying daily rhythm that is aligned with daylight hours and common sleep/wake cycles. A comparison of results with previous landmark studies revealed new and contrasting EMS patterns for several long-established peak occurrence hours--specifically for chest pain, heart problems, stroke, convulsions and seizures, and sudden cardiac arrest/death. Upon closer examination, we also found that heart attacks, diagnosed by paramedics in the field via 12-lead cardiac monitoring, followed the identified common daily pattern of a mid-afternoon peak, departing from prior generally accepted morning tendencies. Extended analysis revealed that the normative pattern prevailed across the NEMSIS data when re-organized to consider monthly, seasonal, daylight-savings vs civil time, and pre-/post- COVID-19 periods. The predictable daily EMS patterns provide impetus for more research that links daily variation with causal risk and protective factors. Our methods are straightforward and presented with detail to provide accessible and replicable implementation for researchers and practitioners.

Bail And Mental Illness, Samuel Wiseman

Faculty Scholarship

In many parts of the United States, the bail system is strikingly unfair, imposing burdensome, and often unmeetable, financial conditions on pretrial liberty even for low-risk defendants. Reforms that reduce or eliminate cash bail and lower pretrial detention rates have made progress in recent years, but now face growing opposition even in generally progressive jurisdictions such as San Francisco and New York City. One source of this opposition is rising concern about crime—particularly crime associated with the unhoused, who disproportionately suffer from mental illness, including substance abuse disorder. This is not a coincidence, as one effect of a cash-bail system, …

Evaluating Electric Bicycle Access In Us National Parks: Advantages And Controversy, Ben Rodman

CMC Senior Theses

Rising global temperatures are causing a higher likelihood of future climate disaster. Changes in personal behavior, that reduce the emissions driving this increase in global temperatures, contribute to the greater good. Electric bicycles (e-bikes) offer a viable option for individuals to reduce their personal contribution to this problem, while at the same time benefit from outdoor recreation. These benefits, along with affordability, are driving the current increase in popularity of this form of transportation. The COVID 19 pandemic fueled an increased interest in outdoor recreation, which in turn contributed to an increase in visitation at US National Parks. This thesis …

A Mathematical Model Of Juvenile Delinquency In The New York State, Oluwasegun Micheal Ibrahim

Articles

This report presents a mathematical model of juvenile delinquency in the New York State. In particular, we develop a juvenile delinquency system of non-linear differential equations using the mathematical epidemiology framework. In constructing this model, we assume that juvenile delinquency can be studied as a socially infectious disease. The stability of the juvenile delinquency-free equilibrium of the model is examined using the standard non-linear dynamical systems theory technique. We carried out a data fitting based on real-life data from the New York State Criminal Justice Services. The research result reveals that the formulated model conforms with the available data and …

From The Boardroom To The Laptop: An Exploration Of African-American Women's Journeys Navigating The Transition From Corporate America To Digital Entrepreneurship, Nina Grace Shelby

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative research explores African-American women's challenges transitioning from Corporate America to entrepreneurship. It aims to highlight the lived experiences of African-American women entrepreneurs and the strategies they employ to achieve successful business ownership. The study utilized a phenomenological approach, using in-depth interviews with African-American women entrepreneurs to gather data on their experiences. The research findings identify significant challenges such as bias and discrimination, lack of resources and support, and personal obstacles that African-American women face when transitioning to entrepreneurship. The research study also identifies effective business practices used by African-American women, such as networking, mentoring, and having a solid …

Between Cooperation And Conflict In Second Look Sentence Review, Kay L. Levine, Ronald F. Wright

Faculty Articles

This Article offers the first scholarly assessment of new resentencing practices initiated by state prosecutors in the United States. Unlike the conviction integrity units that have become institutional fixtures in many prosecutors’ offices over the past two decades, attorneys working on resentencing matters rarely address concerns about the legal integrity or factual accuracy of the conviction itself. Prosecutors and defense attorneys instead consider the continuing integrity of the sentence imposed on the defendant. Perhaps a second look is necessary because the sentence imposed for the crime no longer appears necessary to serve public safety goals, because the prisoner has aged …

Error Aversions And Due Process, Brandon L. Garrett, Gregory Mitchell

Faculty Scholarship

William Blackstone famously expressed the view that convicting the innocent constitutes a much more serious error than acquitting the guilty. This view is the cornerstone of due process protections for those accused of crimes, giving rise to the presumption of innocence and the high burden of proof required for criminal convictions. While most legal elites share Blackstone’s view, the citizen-jurors tasked with making due process protections a reality do not share the law’s preference for false acquittals over false convictions.

Across multiple national surveys, sampling more than 10,000 people, we find that a majority of Americans views false acquittals and …

Crisis Communication And Public Relations: How Fairs Communicated Cancellations During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Olivia Mckenna Robinson

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic halted aspects of a traditional fair including the agriculture, home economics, entertainment, and carnival exhibits that were missed by the diverse stakeholders who enjoy the traditions of this industry. This study examined how fairgoers reacted to the news of cancellation and investigated fair managers’ communication decisions. An explanatory sequential (QUANT → QUAL) mixed methods design was used. A survey was conducted asking fairgoers to recall communication strategies and feelings after the communication. A more in-depth focus group with fair managers was hosted to understand how crisis communication was utilized, and if active information seekers versus passive information …

Exploring Graduated Court Diversion Clients' Experience Of Psychotherapy In Their Community Reintegration, Daniel Oduro Sem

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Court Diversion Program (CDP) seeks to reduce the criminalization and reoffending among people living with mental illness to ensure their community reintegration (Schneider, 2010). The complex nature of achieving this goal calls for a comprehensive strategy, which requires a collaborative effort of legal, health care, and allied professionals including psychotherapists. However, because most CDP clients frequently receive medication treatment, not much is known about how CDP clients find psychotherapy services even though psychotherapy is effective for addressing mental illnesses and offending behaviors (Feingold & Fox, 2018; Feucht & Holt, 2016), To gain more insight into the issue, this study applied …

Strength In Numbers: An Exploratory Case Study On The Impact Of Conflict In Multi-Institutional Higher Education Collaborations, Michele Robyn Dinicola

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

The higher education landscape is changing. Students seeking access to college are increasinglydiverse, geographically dispersed, socioeconomically challenged, and will require higher education administrators to closely examine their models to ensure they are well-suited to serve the needs of these students. Responding to these shifts will require higher education administrators to shed traditional approaches in favor of innovative, cost-effective, flexible models of education delivery. Many institutions address this challenge through a reliance on higher education consortia and collaborations. In Maryland, one approach to collaboration takes the form of multi-institutional Regional Higher Education Centers (RHEC) like the largest of them, the Universities …

The Impact Of Gender Minority Stress On Eating Pathology And Body Checking Behaviors In Transgender And Non-Binary Adults, Klaudia Bialy

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Transgender and gender non-binary (TNB) individuals commonly report diminished mental health when compared to cisgender individuals. TNB individuals experience unique stressors due to their gender identity such as gender-based discrimination and victimization, internalized transphobia, and non-affirmation of their gender. Due to these unique stressors, TNB individuals experience elevated rates of psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, and suicidality. Additionally, TNB individuals report body image issues and disordered eating. This study examined if gender minority stress predicts the relationship between body checking behaviors and eating pathology amongst TNB individuals. Simple linear regression models were used to assess the possible impact gender …

Remodeling The Closet: The Individual And Organizational Correlates Of Workplace Sexual Identity Management, David M. Mendelsohn

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The strategies by which sexual minority employees manage their sexual identities in the workplace have long been a subject of inquiry. Extant research has long recognized that these employees potentially engage in several different strategies for workplace sexual identity management (e.g., actively concealing their identity vs. disclosing their identity), models of sexual identity management tend to focus only on factors that influence disclosure decisions. The current series of two survey studies explored the broader organizational correlates of three workplace sexual identity management strategies: general outness, concealment, and disclosure, as well as whether differences existed based on gender and sexual identity …

Interprofessional Team Collaboration For Routine And Emergent Mental Health Concerns Among Collegiate Student-Athletes: A Case Series From The Association For Athletic Training Education Research Network, Lindsey E. Eberman, Tara A. Armstrong, Elizabeth R. Neil, Jessica L. Kirby, Korrin M. Vanderhoof, Stacy E. Walker

Rehabilitation Sciences Faculty Publications

Collegiate student-athletes experience an increasing number of mental health concerns. To help address these concerns and provide high-quality health care for student-athletes, institutions of higher education are being encouraged to create interprofessional health care teams that are specifically dedicated to managing mental health. We interviewed 3 interprofessional health care teams who collaborate to manage routine and emergency mental health conditions in collegiate student-athletes. Teams represented all 3 National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) divisions and included athletic trainers, clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, dietitians and nutritionists, social workers, nurses, and physician assistants (associates). The interprofessional teams indicated that the existing NCAA recommendations helped …

Radioactive, Internal Colonialism: The Uranium Industry’S Historic And Current Impact On The Navajo Nation, Sophie Arens

Pitzer Senior Theses

The United States withheld information pertaining to the health problems associated with nuclear power, allowing uranium to be extracted, processed, and stored in the Southwest of the United States and more specifically the Navajo Nation. With this, many Diné people who had previously worked in the mines or lived within close vicinity to facilities developed various types of illnesses. This thesis argues that the development of nuclear energy in the United States is a form of radioactive, internal colonialism and that the current waste facility located in Carlsbad, New Mexico is furthering this history into the present day. This thesis …

Smoke, Air, Fire, Energy (Safe) In Rural California: Critical Reflections On An Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration, Deepti Chatti, Carisse Geronimo, Cassidy Barrientos, Jana Ganion, Malcolm Moncheur, Peter Alstone Phd, Shawn Bourque, Tanya Garcia, Tesfayohanes Yacob

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

This article provides a synthesis of the interconnected problems of tenuous energy access, wildfires, and exposures to high air pollution in Indigenous communities in rural California through the lens of ongoing collaborative research being carried out by researchers at Cal Poly Humboldt, Schatz Energy Research Center, Karuk Department of Natural Resources, and the Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe. The collaboration is funded by the Strategic Growth Council of the state of California, and we hope is the beginning of a longer term relationship between all partners. We are an interdisciplinary team of researchers drawing on energy engineering, air pollution science, and …

Picturing The Future City: Digital Mediation And Creative Placemaking, Jessica Mccallum Breen

Theses and Dissertations--Geography

Creative placemaking is an arts-oriented community development policy that focuses on the potential for art, artists, and cultural organizations to generate social, economic, and cultural vibrancy in their communities and is a primary tool of culture-led (re)development practices (Markusen & Gwada, 2010). Despite the focus of creative placemakers on the local impacts of their work, creative placemaking is more than local, it is both translocal and transcalar. In this dissertation, I examine the role that digital mediation plays in creative placemaking and how it makes visible these translocal and transcalar connections. I begin by outlining a methodology for tracing replicated …

Callosal Malformations: Developmental Impacts And Parental Adjustment During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Kera Larson

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

In March 2020 the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was determined to be a global health crisis (Lee et al., 2021). As the virus continued to spread rapidly, individuals had to adjust their daily routines to reduce disease transmission. Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum (AgCC) is a broad term used when there is a presence of congenital brain malformation in the region of the brain responsible for transmitting information to both left and right hemispheres (Paul, 2011). Evaluation of individuals with AgCC have been observed to demonstrate specific deficits including cognitive efficiency, transfer of sensory-motor information, and complex reasoning (Brown & …

"Teamwork Makes The Dream Work": Infusing Interprofessional Education Into Human Services Curriculum And Training, Nicholas Schmoyer, Kristy Carlisle

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

Given the provision of health and wellness services is shifting towards an interdisciplinary framework, human services professionals may be in a unique position to collaborate with various professionals in the pursuit of client welfare. To competently engage in interprofessional care, interprofessional education (IPE) in human services training programs is necessary. This paper points to the alignment between human services organizations, values, and practice with the Interprofessional Education Collaborative’s competencies and makes recommendations for the didactic infusion of IPE into human services programs, curricula, coursework, and experiences.

Racial Control Under The Guise Of Terror Threat: Policing Of Us Muslim, Arab, And Swana Communities, Louise Cainkar

Social and Cultural Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Using an analysis of U.S. government policies that have had high impacts on the personal safety and freedom of movement and expression of Arabs, Muslims, and others of Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) origins living in or seeking to migrate to the US, this article argues that these policies mirror in significant ways a range of policies used currently and historically to police and control Black and brown bodies. Specifically, the article addresses three tactics shared across such policies: pre-emption, containment, and collective responsibility, and demonstrates how they are manifested in specific anti-terrorism and national security policies aimed at …

Counties As Catalysts For Change_ Exploring The Economic Costs Of Child Maltreatment Through Its Connection To Incarceration, Kayla Solomon

Scripps Senior Theses

This study posits the question, what is the relationship between child maltreatment and adult incarceration at the county-level, and how can we utilize an understanding of it to inform child welfare strategies? Child maltreatment is a public health crisis and an obstacle to the United States Economy. Inspired by my high school capstone project on the connection between the foster care and criminal justice systems, I entered this project hoping to add to the myriad of literature that influences child welfare policy throughout California and the broader United States. This project serves to culminate my college career and exemplifies my …

From “The Loss Of The Innocents” To “Crisis Actors”: Media Portrayal Of Rampage School Shootings From 1998-2021, Justice E. Greene

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

As rampage school shootings continue to occur in the United States, media coverage of such shootings continues to evolve. Media is a powerful force for how people form their understandings, opinions, and beliefs and, at least in part, the types of media they consume, it is important to understand how rampage school shootings are conveyed to the public. These shootings go through what is known as an “Issue-Attention Cycle” (Downs 1972) as coverage progresses. Using content analysis, this thesis examines New York Times articles covering nine rampage school shootings from 1998-2021 to see both how media coverage changes over the …